


Kokichi gets caught vandalising

by CatsNotCalculus



Category: Dangan Ronpa - All Media Types, New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Canon Compliant, Currently at least, Kind of angsty, Kokichi makes it hard to do that, M/M, Not really as cute as the title implies, Shuichi tries to find good in Kokichi, Sort Of Fluff, Spoilers, but not really?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-17
Updated: 2019-01-17
Packaged: 2019-10-11 15:29:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,558
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17449619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatsNotCalculus/pseuds/CatsNotCalculus
Summary: Shortly after the third trial, Kokichi sneaks off to continue his plan.Shuichi has his talk with Kaito outside the dorms and spots the little leader sprinting across the courtyard.The detective follows.





	Kokichi gets caught vandalising

The third trial had recently ended. The group of ultimate students made their way back to the dorms with warm but uneasy smiles. The walk across the courtyard was filled with light talk and subtle glances to each other. No one had really wanted to talk about what had just occurred, at least not with their current emotional states. They were all tired. Gonta was carrying Himiko on his back, and Shuichi was glad she had managed to let out most of her misery before sleeping so soundly.

It wasn’t the same for him and Kaede, he’d barely managed to sleep after watching her die.

A part of him was somewhat envious that Himiko could sleep like this after her best friends had been murdered. He bit his lip before he made his own comment, similar to everyone else's ones, about how peaceful she looked sleeping like that. Sleep sounded like a good idea. The sound of everyone’s footsteps walking at the same pace was soothing, but it still made a weird feeling settle in his gut. Was it really okay to sleep soundly tonight after experiencing all this death? The sensation was akin to nausea but it was weak.

Weaker than it had been for Kaede.

 _Like a sickness that would clear up after only a few hours_. Somehow that idea made him feel worse. It was obvious that everyone was almost getting used to this. This killing game. As much as it made him want to cry and lurch and do anything in his power to stop the killing from happening ever again, the effects of it had already taken root. Everyone was changing, as this wasn’t the kind of thing you’d ever forget. These experiences would shape the nice people walking just a few steps ahead of him.

He blinked, and slowly counted his friends walking ahead of him, turning his head to find Tsumugi, who was quiet but carefully watching everyone. A small smile was sent his way from the cosplayer, and he returned it as there was nothing else to do. The smile left him soon enough as his previous goal came back to mind. Golden orbs flicked back over to the group ahead, a certain supreme leader was talking animatedly at the front of the group, presumably teasing Keebo. Kokichi did a little spin to start walking backwards, while also continuing to spin his lies. Though, from what Shuichi could hear, none of them seemed malicious tonight.

It almost was like the liar was trying to take everyone’s minds off what had happened. That was probably mostly just Shuichi hoping that the little leader was graced with at least a small amount of decency. Though, he’d already kind of shown that after the trial had ended, when he spoke to Himiko, but of course he was still technically being rude.

A shout left Miu’s mouth at something the purple leader had said, and an amused upturn of lips managed to break free from the detective’s brooding. Kokichi looked his way for a brief second with his usual innocent but not innocent grin, and soon returned his attention to making the others annoyed. A few were soon laughing quietly at the antics of Kokichi but Keebo seemed to be having trouble not taking that as more robophobia, rather than the others just enjoying a joke. Gonta said something about Kokichi being ungentlemanly, and Tsumugi explained how it was ‘plain to see’ that Kokichi was likely joking in this instance. Even Maki was watching with a tiny crackle of mirth in her eyes.

Kaito was unusually quiet though.

Kokichi watched the smile fade from Shuichi’s face and took a quick glance to see what the detective was overthinking about now. Space boy looked a little pale. The supreme leader let out a little ‘Neeheehee’ and zeroed in on his new target.

‘Oh Kaaaaiiito! What’s got you so down? C’mon, even _I’m_ being a sweet little button to you guuys~! Surely you can find it in your star-shaped heart to try to enjoy yourself? What’s wroong?’

‘Kokichi, you were being robophobic! I will not stand for your obvious discrimination toward me! I'll see you in court-!’ Keebo tried to get a word in edgewise but Kokichi blatantly ignored him, he was far more interested in the kind of response he would get from the astronaut. Deep purple orbs became calculating as the little leader watched with careful attention, his smile growing wider almost unnaturally.

‘Hah, never thought I’d see the day where you ask me a question like that! Nah, I’m fine, just tired.’ Kaito responded with his usual grin and raised fist, the action occurring more out of habit than of any dramatic merit. Kokichi raised an eyebrow but said nothing else. The liar was adept at spotting most of the student’s awful attempts at lies, tiny hints like whether or not they looked him in the eyes, whether they put distance between them, if they had some kind of easy to spot ‘tell’. Shuichi was slowly getting better at covering up his lies in the trials, but he couldn’t hide them from the purple leader entirely.

...He was getting off track, thinking about the detective.

Anyway, Kaito had definitely just lied.

But that wasn’t Kokichi’s problem, Kaito’d probably tell his ‘sidekicks’ about whatever he was feeling later anyway. It wasn’t in the leader’s desires to know in the first place, because that would mean that Kaito trusted him with that knowledge. It was good that he didn’t trust Kokichi. Kaito was like a link to everyone here, everyone felt his support whether they wanted it or not. If Kaito didn’t trust Kokichi, it was likely that no one else did either. Except maybe Gonta, but that was debatable.

Though, Shuichi was another matter entirely.

Kokichi decided to ignore Kaito’s comment about his question, instead looking to see if Shuichi had noticed the astronaut’s lie. The detective’s eyes were still flicking between everyone, occasionally locking with Kokichi’s. He probably hadn’t noticed then. The liar put his hands behind his head and started walking forwards again after almost tripping on the stairs. The dorms were just up ahead and the little leader had to be seen entering his room first. That was important.

In the purple leader’s silence, Keebo and Miu had started talking techno-jargon and a few disgusting things came from the inventor’s mouth that he immediately wanted to purge from his brain. Tsumugi was quietly inquiring to Gonta about how he was feeling and then calmly woke Himiko so she could actually get to her room to promptly fall asleep again. The mage nyehed but slowly climbed off of Gonta, holding onto his arm as a balance as they made their way to the entrance of the dorms. The assassin was walking a tad too close to the astronaut, and Kokichi hummed in thought.

Kokichi was the first to slip through the doors, not bothering to look back or say goodnight to any of the other students milling through the entrance. Once inside his dorm, he cracked his door open just a tad so he could spot the other students calling out goodnights to each other from across the hall. The marker he left on his desk was slipped into his pocket quickly. He let a few minutes pass, to make sure everyone was within their rooms before making his move. Down the stairs, out the doors and swiftly to the back of the school. Since no one was likely around, he didn’t bother being as observant as he usually would be, preferring speed over vigilance.

The courtyard was silent as he jogged across it, only his small feet making noise every time they fell across the pavement.

It had become something of a ritual; every trial, he'd sneak out and continue his little plan. The little leader sped past the patio entrance to the dining hall, continuing further on the path. Noticing the tree that bared the inconspicuous mark he’d put there to make these trips easier to navigate in the dark, his feet left the pavement as he darted past the tree toward his objective hidden in the grass. Kokichi’s pace came to a stop when he reached it, the rock Gonta had found so long ago.

A chuckle escaped the purple supreme leader as he slipped the marker out of his pocket. He popped it open, holding the cap in his indomitate hand. When Gonta had first found this rock, the liar had an idea. An idea that maybe could work. It relied on the assumption (and later known, fact) that the Monokubs would lose a member after every trial, during the execution. Once there were no Monokubs left to pilot the exisals, his real plan could fall into motion. Until then, there wasn't much he could do other than give this very subtle hint toward what he wanted everyone to think.

Though, it was likely he'd have to act out even further for everyone to be able to believe the lie. He'd have to do something really morally apprehensible. The grin stretched across his face but it didn't reach his eyes, he didn't want it to. Not now anyway. Later, he'd make sure it did. When everyone else could see it.

‘Pity so many people had to die before my plan could save them.’

His words, though mumbled, travelled in the quiet of the night. He knew he couldn't say too much aloud, as Monokuma had to some way of watching them, but it felt good to let his feelings leave his lips. Even if it was only vague.

It was safe because no one but Monokuma was watching. Monokuma wouldn't know what to make of the words anyway. It might also be entertaining to watch the bear try to figure him out.

His signature laugh fell into the air as he stopped hesitating. Taking out a torch with a small diameter he kneeled down and leaned over the rock. He'd already practised the handwriting style on paper, he had to, to be able to write it the same way as on the rock. Now, the liar could add to it without it giving the feeling of someone else writing it atop the original message. The new letters were inked into the rock, slowly and carefully, ensuring no mistakes were made.

Once he was done, the little leader leaned back to appreciate his good work and stood, brushing the dirt off his knees. He turned the torch off, he could get around in the dark with pretty much no problems, he only needed it to see where he had to mark the stone. His eyes still needed to adjust a bit after the torch had made the area around him so bright. Next, he had something to collect from the latest crime scenes, he probably had to hurry and-

A gasp of surprise left him before he knew what to do.

The snap of a twig was hard to miss when it was coming from directly behind you, a few paces even. The leader spun back to the direction the patio was in and could barely make out the details of the silhouette in front of him. As his eyes adjusted just that bit more, the person just ahead of him become perfectly clear.

‘As much as I looove being stalked by my beloved, Shuichi, I wouldn’t want to interrupt your beauty sleep!’ Kokichi perfectly mimicked the eyes of a child as he spoke.

‘...But that’s a lie.’ The grin that split across his face was as menacing as he could make it. He narrowed his purple eyes in an attempt to intimidate. The liar took a few careful steps forward, trying to communicate to Shuichi with body language that Kokichi still held all the power in this conversation.

‘Just forget you ever saw me here and I won’t have to send my minions to _clean up_ this mess, if you know what I mean. A special deal for a special guy! I’ll even throw in a bonus of not being tortured!’ He flip-flopped between the mean smile that looked like it would split his face in two and the innocent but playful eyes that he used to capture his prey in wondering how someone so cute could say such awful things.

The detective tensed up but after sweeping his gaze over Kokichi, he relaxed and his face became one more of intense analysis.

‘Ah, you’re, you’re trying to direct my attention elsewhere… What you said, it’s the truth, isn’t it? It’s how you feel?’ Kokichi could see the clockwork spinning in the detective’s brain, trying to unwind the liar’s lies and find which ones were truths and _I have to stop him._

‘Yes, it’s exactly how I feeel! I love everyone here! Especially Kiyo, I felt this morbid connection with him as he boiled alive! Neeheehee, that was a lie, obviously. I couldn’t care less for your lives! I love how everyone’s died so wonderfully! I do hope you’ll show me your blood one day Shuichi~!’

‘But you said-’

‘That little sentence is enough to make you trust me? How worrying! You should be more suspicious! Aaawwwh Shu-i-chi wants to trust me-e! How cute.’

The detective sighed before clenching a fist, trying to scrounge up some of the confidence that Kaito had been able to give him.

‘Well, you wouldn’t have said that if you thought you weren’t alone. There would be no reason to keep up such an act if you thought you were alone.’ The detective was right, of course he was, but it’s not like Kokichi would cave in. _The show’s not over yet. He doesn’t technically know_ **_anything._ **

All the detective had was that measly sentence, “ _Pity so many people had to die before my plan could save them._ ” There was only so much that Shuichi could theorize about it, and as long as Kokichi could combat him, it’d be fine. The little leader could only hope that Shuichi would fall face first into the lies.

_Still, it’s annoying that this even happened in the first place!_

‘So you’re just going to reason away every single thing I’ve done so far as a lie? That doesn’t seem fair~. I’m an evil supreme leader, you shouldn’t trust me in the first place.’ His fingertip touched his lips in a familiar way. His demeanour remained calm, but hellfire was burning inside. If Shuichi figured his shit out, that would make everything useless! Did Monokuma set him up for this? _Tch._

‘Kokichi.’

‘WHAT?’ The outburst was sudden but still calculated, and the detective jumped back a little. Golden orbs flicked to the ground, in a modest expression. Softer than Kokichi wanted it to be. _He’s not supposed to trust me, goddamnit!_ Shuichi scratched the back of his head nervously, but still locked eyes with the now furious liar.

‘Ah, I just, I don’t believe you. I think that what you said was the truth. I don’t know why you try to make yourself out to be this unlikable person all the time... but now I know. It’s not like I trust you a lot, but now I think I get your intentions. I, I feel like I understand you a bit more...’ The gentle smile on his features looked too nice. He’d even fucking put his hand over his heart. The sight made the little leader fume with anger, but there was nothing he could do! He knew that Shuichi would be hard to convince otherwise. _Should have kept my fucking mouth shut. At least then I’d have just been caught writing on the stupid rock, that would be way better._

Kokichi let out a calm sigh, returning to his serene but malicious smile. One last chance to fix this. The lies fell out of his mouth.

‘Are you so sure that you want to believe one sentence I said, over every other one? I’m a liar, remember? Who’s to say that I won’t kill anyone anyway? Even if I said it was a pity so many people had to die, perhaps I only meant those **awful** killers? That’s a lie, they weren’t awful. Mom was so inspirational, the way she drowned the tennis boy like she would a rat! I particularly liked Kaede’s plan, even though she wanted to kill the mastermind, the one causing all this fun! She was so smart, y’know we totally would’ve all died if she hadn’t gotten **_you_** to expose her!

‘What a pity that we don’t have the intelligence of all those _killers_ to back us up any more! They were all so interesting! They were all like icons! What wonderful kills they showed me! I can only hope I live up to their shows of excellence when I become blackened! Of course, when I do, you will have to work into overtime Mr Detective!’ Evil had overtaken his expression and he hoped it’d be enough to shake Shuichi off. His face showed nothing but sick enjoyment, while his insides were crawling up his throat as he spoke the disgusting words.

What would be even better, is if Shuichi believed this and _then_ told all the others about this kind of outburst. That would significantly lower the student’s trust in him. If he had both Kaito _and_ Shuichi not wanting to touch him with a ten-foot pole, then the rest of his plan would be _soooo_ much easier to implement!

Shuichi had paled. It was hard to make out in the darkness, but he definitely saw the detective’s face become blank and his eyes widen. As much as it hurt to make the kind boy feel so crushed, it was for the best. Kokichi didn’t waver when he spoke of Kaede. The liar knew that bringing up Kaede was a low blow, but that was the whole point. The satisfied smile that spread across the leader’s face was one akin to a cat that had caught the mouse.

He had to make it worse. That way, the detective would have nothing more to say, nothing at all. He had to enjoy watching the detective crumble with his theory. He had to watch him, otherwise that would show the weakness that Shuichi was looking for so desperately on his face.

A few words sloshed around in his mouth, but he couldn’t quite bring up the will to say them. Some things were too cruel, even for the character he had made himself become.

‘I, I,’ Shuichi stammered, obviously quite taken aback by Kokichi’s words and his overwhelmingly dark demeanour. Was he lying? Was this the real truth? The detective had thought that maybe, just maybe he’d unwound at least some of the mystery that was the supreme leader. He seemed genuine enough, but Shuichi had learned already that the leader was a brilliant liar, and also a brilliant actor. Was he still trying to deceive him? For what purpose?

Kaito always said that he should believe in others more…

It seemed unlikely now, but… It was possible that Kokichi was overcompensating for being caught saying his true feelings. The words he’d spoken took precedence over the fact that the liar was writing on the rock Gonta had found. He’d also been focussing on the “ _Pity so many people had to die”_ part, rather than the _“before my plan could save them”._ Kokichi had mentioned a plan… did the rock have something to do with it? What was his plan…? Did he think Shuichi wouldn’t approve of a plan to save everyone? That part of the sentence also directly contradicted what the leader had said just before!

Shuichi couldn’t help but say exactly what was on his mind. The lightbulb in his head converted to words before he knew it.

‘No, that’s wrong. You said you had a plan to _save_ everyone. Clearly, you weren’t talking about the killers or about wanting to kill anyone else. You’re lying again.’

The smile on the leader’s face froze and quickly morphed into venomous spite. He took a step closer to try to further intimidate. Shuichi noticed the tactic this time, standing his ground.

‘SHIT! Shuichi, would you just **fucking** listen? Just let it go. You’re going to ruin everything! I swear to god, I’ll kill you if you mess with my plan, goddamnit!’

‘Why are you out here?’

‘What?’

‘Why have you been writing on the rock all this time?’

‘It’s a promise to my dead family! That’s a lie. It’s, uh, I don’t even know at this point. I’m bored, I want to go to sleep.’

Shuichi glared. The liar was still trying to get out of talking about it. What reason would he have to want to avoid it so badly? Did he… not trust Shuichi enough to tell him? The glare softened a little, and he exhaled a breath. The detective reached out a hand.

‘Promise me that you won’t do anything rash, okay? Don’t lie. If you’re not going to promise me that, I’ll, I’ll tell the others what you said.’

It was Kokichi’s turn to send him a dark look, emphasised by the frown on his lips. Mere seconds later, an obviously fake smile fell across his lips.

‘How boring, fiiine~!’

Kokichi lied as he took the detective’s hand.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Hello, 
> 
> This was just mostly born out of my curiosity of how Kokichi's plan was supposed to function. I might add a chapter or two with more shippy stuff, but I mostly just wanted to get a feel for writing Kokichi.  
> Also how I wrote Kokichi is moreso an interpretation than anything else, idk if I'm smart enough to fully figure him out.
> 
> I'm still working on my other story, don't worry.  
> Hope you enjoyed! Leave a comment if you want to, good and bad feedback is welcome!


End file.
